6 THE WEEKEND NEOS KOSMOS | SATURDAY 25 JULY 2015 NEWS Return to austerity CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Measures were also taken to overhaul the judiciary system. During the debate Mr Tsipras told the parliament once again that he was not happy with the measures that the lenders had imposed. "We chose a difficult compromise to avert the most extreme plans by the most extreme circles in Europe," he told MPs, adding that the deal was the only way Greece could remain in the eurozone. Negotiations will now begin with the creditors on agreeing the detailed terms of the bailout. Due to be completed within a month, a likely scenario is that once concluded, the full agreement will usher in early elections. However, major sticking points are still possible. The most contentious measures - including phasing out early retirement and tax hikes for farmers - have been pushed back to August. Meanwhile, Greeks this week faced a new era of austerity. They woke on Monday able to enter banks for the first time in weeks, but with Value Added Tax increased from 13 per cent to 23 per cent, the cost of the bailout deal was immediately felt in their pockets. Many everyday supermarket basics have increased in price. Services hit by the increase include restaurants and cafes, funeral parlours, taxis, and the much-used tu- torial schools - held precious by tens of thousands of parents trying to give their kids a better start in life. To get a sense of the mood across the country this week, Neos Kosmos spoke to a handful of those affected. Twenty-seven-year-old Stav Balafas in Athens was shocked by price increases to the most basic necessities. "We'd get coffee and sparkling water every day for €4 and the next day we were surprised to pay €5. They listed coffee and sparkling water under luxury goods. Even tea is seen as luxury goods. No joke. "People are concerned about public transport ticket prices, taxis and petrol getting more expensive. Air, bus and even boat fares are up. The internet and phone calls got a top-up." Valia Evangelatou (26) in Chios thinks the imposition of higher tax rates for virtually identical products is confusing. "Normal bread stays the same, bread with olives gets a hike. Normal milk stays the same, chocolate milk goes up. You need to have a master’s degree in advanced economics to figure it all out," said Ms Evangelatou. Despina Varsami (21), on holiday in Chania, was bemused by the jump in price of that modest staple - the souvlaki. "I swore to eat one a day while I'm here. It used to be €1.80 and now it's €2.30. I wonder if they taxed each ingredient separately!" Ilias Katrakis in Chalkidiki says the VAT hike will not get to the root of Greece's economic problems but instead hit the poorest. R S R S: G     F C,             A   G  ,     G         R S R S  N 2015,         G M M . G  S        G     E    .  S     ,     ,   ,                 .  S          .  S          R C M  . S             .  A     --          F C    .  A            .  T R C M                    .  T         4 V ,  T, C, T  S. A.  T          N, 2015. I  :  A     .  CV  – F C           . T           .  P    ’ G  .  F      ,   Z A  (03) 9552 4102  .. "The increase will once again hurt the little man when we should be looking at tax evasion. "I say increase the VAT to 28 per cent for cash transactions but keep it at 18 per cent for card transactions. This will A supermarket worker in Athens amends price tags to include the new VAT increase. offer the incentive to move away from our outdated cash system, which is a huge part of the problem." Kosta Karageorgiou in Mykonos echoed his sentiments. "People need to start paying taxes, yes, mainly the rich, but not on basic commodities and tourism. Tourism is what keeps this country alive and right now the prices are unappealing even to holiday makers from abroad." Panagiota Stamou, a single mum living in Thessaloniki, sums up the mood of most PHOTO: AP/THANASSIS STAVRAKIS. Greeks who expected more from a government that vowed to fight austerity. "I'm struggling to make ends meet on a salary of just €400 a month. If the price of food, electricity and water goes up, but my wage stays the same there is absolutely no way I can survive," says the 26-year-old. "My child and I are already living on the absolute bare minimum. I didn't vote for SYRIZA for this. I voted for change. I voted 'No'. This is far worse than anything I expected from them." Exclusive: Georganas to run for preselection CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 "I'm certainly very passionate about my community and I feel Hindmarsh deserves better than its current MP and government," he said. "It would be an honour to represent my community again." The long-time Labor man, hugely popular in the party and the Hindmarsh electorate, is unlikely to face a contest in the preselection process. Georganas said that issues facing an electorate he knows so well compelled him to stand up and be counted. "We need to create jobs and the Abbott government and the local member currently came into government promising they would build those submarines in South Australia. They failed to deliver on that promise. "They've lied to the elector- "I've always campaigned on issues that affect my community - issues like pensions, the Medicare co-payment which they introduced through the back door. I want to support people affected by these issues.” Asked about Bill Shorten's Steve Georganas reaches out to voters in 2013. ate and these are the kind of things that have prompted me to put myself up to recontest Hindmarsh." Known as one of the country's most affable political operators, Georganas says he will relish the fight if selected. "It's a marginal seat and I've never taken the electorate for granted." view that Labor should emulate the Liberals' policy of turning back asylum seeker boats, Georganas, ever the diplomat, said: "Bill's entitled to his view. There's a debate to be had this weekend and there are a lot of people with views that differ." Georganas is attending this weekend's ALP conference in Melbourne as an observer. "If I had a vote, I'd vote 'no' to a policy of turning boats back. We should have policies which apply to international law." DIGITAL.NEOSKOSMOS.COM 48426